Corn-planter.



PATENTED JAN. 28, 1908.

W. A TUTTLB. CORN PLANTER.

APPLK'ATION YILED 5214223, 1907.

3 SHEETSSHIIET 1.

' a'wesdoz I l a O t C a PATENTED JAN. 28, 19128.

. i YF'T 23.1337.

3 SHEETS SHEL 2 an mode:

a Z a w A N0. 877,810. PATENTED JAN. 1905. W. A. TUTTLE.

CORN PLANTER.

lmir qrlmqrg uvcnloz H74. yatefle which t "WILLIAM A. TUTTLE, OF GRAYMONT, ILLINOIS.

CORN-PLANTER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan 28, 1908.

Application filed September 23- 1907. Serial No. 394-130.

T all whom it may e01. fern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM A. T UTTLE, citizen of the United States, residing at Graymont, in the county of Livingston and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Corn-Planters, of which'the following is a specification.

This invention contemplates certain new and useful improvements in corn )lanteis of that t 0 known as edge drop planters, in

he corn is fed through the drill from hoppers, mounted on the framework of the planter, the feed being regulated by means of revoluble plates mounted in the lower ends of the hoppers and rotated by pinions mounted on the actuating shaftand meshing with teeth on the lower face of the feed plates.

lhis invention has for its primary object an improved construction of corn planter of this character, so arranged that any desired number of kernels may be planted in a hill, according to the'soil fertility, by the simple movement of a single lever, doing away with the necessity of changing the feed plates in order to change the feed.

With these and other objects in view as will more fully appear as the description proceeds, the invention consists in certain constructions, arrangements and combinations of the parts that l shall hereinafter fully describe, and then point out the novel features in the appended claims.

For a full understanding of the invention, reference is to be had to the following description and accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a part of a corn planter equipped with the improvements of my invention; Fig. 2 is an elevation of a ortion of the feed regulating mechanism; igs. 3 and 4 are similar views illustrating a modified form of the invention; Fig. 5 is a fragmentary view illustrating another modification hereinafter referred to; and, Fig. 6'is a detail of a plate employed in the last named modification.

Corresponding and like parts are referred to in the following description and indicated in all the views of the drawings by the same reference characters.

Referring to the drawings, Figs. 1 and 2, the numeral 1 designates the hoppers of an edge corn )lantcr, 2 the actuating shaft for the feed dates of said hoppers, and 3 the framewor supporting the hoppers and other parts of the planter.

As heretofore constructed the actuatingshaft of planters of this tv e carries two pinions w rich mesh with teet 1 on the lower sides of the feed )lates, so as to revolve the plates as the sha t turns. As before stated, it IS customary to remove one plate and substitute a different plate for it, in order to change the feed. My invention aims to obviate this dilliculty and use the same feed plates for depositing the different quantities of kernels in the hills.

In carrying out nrvinvcntion, Imount upon the actuatin shaft 2, two series of pinions to slide on tic said shaft but held to turn therewith. In order to secure a different feed, one pair of pinions designated 4, may be provided, for instance, with three teeth, the. remaining portion of the icriphery be' smoother devoid of teeth, the next pair ffi )inions 5 mav be )rovidcd with sa six pinions, 4, 5 and 6 are provided with grooved collars 7, respectively, secured thereto or formed integrally therewith, and shifting forks S engage the respective collars so as to move the two sets of pinions along the shaft in one direction or the other, so as tocause meshing engagement of the feed plates with any pair of pinions, according to t e feed de- SIIH Obviously if the pair of pinions 4 mesh with the feed plates the latter will be turned upon the revolution of the shaft 2 and discharge, say, but one kernel at each bill. If the pinions are shifted along the shaft so as to bring the pinions 5 with six teeth into engagement with the respective feed plates, twice the number will be de osited at each hill, and if the pinions ere sfiifted along the shaft so as to cause the pinions 6 with nine teeth to mesh with the feed plates, three kernels may be deposited at each hill.

In order to simultaneously shift both sets of pinions, I connect the two shifting forks 8 by means of a rod 9, said rods being connected at its ends to a shipper lever 10, fulcrumed on a bracket or sumdard 11, on the framework 3 and designed to be held in locking engagement with any one of a series of notches in being connected to the actuating hand lever 10 at the same point or on the same side of the fulcrum of said lever.

For that type of planter in 'llltll the plates turn in opposite directions. the parts of my invention are arranged as illustrated in Fig. 3, in wh ch 2" designates the actuating or drive shalt of the plates, 4, 5 and (3 the inions, I the collars thereof, and 8 the s rifting forks that are ser'tirtd by means of the link rodst) to the zit-looting lever It) at opposite sides of the fulcrum thereof. so that when said lever is moved in one direction the two sets of pinions will be moved apart or awav from each other. In this arrangement, tie two sets of pinions are. both located between or on the inner sides of the hopper 1, whereas it-is noted that in this arrangement illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, one set of pinions is located on the inner side of the ho iper and the other set of pinions is locate on the. outer side of the other hopper. For an understanding of another form or embodiment of my invention, reference is to be had to Fig. 5. In this ('onstrurtion and arrangement of the parts 2" designates the stunting shaft, and 13 the clutch member mounted thereon. in this ease or form the rivet through the shaft on the. eluteh is drawn out; and a disk or wheel 14 is riveted or otherwise held on the shaft elose to the clutch member 13. This wheel carries a series of laterally movable pins 15 that are spring pressed away from the eluteh and which carry the rollers 16 attheir outer ends as shown. The pins 15 are lot'ated at equidistant points on the disk 14, and in the present instanee, I have shown three. of these pins, the arrangement being such as to enable the operator, without the neeessity of changing the feed plates. to plant three, two, or one kernel in each bill, as desired. When the desired pin is pushed out, the (hitch will catch the pin and marry the shaft around. One of these pins is arranged in this manner to roll the shaft clear around, so as to plant. three kernels in a hill. The second pitllis adapted to turn the shaft two-thirds 'ot a revolution so as to deposit two kernels to a hill, and the third pin is arranged to turn the shaft one-third of a revolution so as to plant but one kernel in a hill. in order to control the pins 15 and )ush them up into the teeth of the eluteh where the elutrh will engage them, 1 mount a )late 17 fast to one side of the framework, (lose to the disk 14. The said plate 17 surrounds the shaft 2" but does not move. with the shaft, being made fast to the harm-work as above stated. The ilate. 17 is provided with outwardly o )ening doors 18, here being two of said ours in the resent instanre'. .lhese doors are arranged in the path of movement ol' the rollers Hlof the pins 15 and when open, thedoors permit the pins to be ret-raeted in the disk which carries them so as to more out of operative relation to the elutrh member 13. These doors may he indepemlently elosed by means of a hand lever 19, as shown. When both ol said doors are ('losed, it is obvious that all of the pins will be shoved so that the elulr'h will atvh them. It is to he umh-rstood that one of these doors is loeated where the rlut 'h stops when autonmtirnltv thrown out of gear by the usual tripping met'hnnisul (not shown); The other door is lut'illtll at a point further on in the plate, one-third ol' the t-irrumferenre ol' the latter. and when the doors are open, the pins slide out into them so that the. elutt-h ran not strike. them. By this means, if all the doors are lost-d, the feed )lates will be rarried entire y around and deposit, say, three kernels in a. hill: if the first door is open, the p ates will be earried around only two thirds of their revolution so as to deposit two kernels in a hill, and if both' the lirst and second doors are open, the plates will drop only one kernel to a hill. itis obvious that the invention is not limited to drop one, two, or three kernels in a hill, but the invention is suseeptible to an arrangement whereby four or live kernels may be dropped, as desired. it is to be noted that these pins 15 will slide into the doors when the latter are. opened, but as the shaft runs on by the elutoh, striking some pin that has been pushed out, the pin will move out of the door, owing tr the slanting position ol' the door when opened. The next pin will drop in. but wil move out if it is not the plate for the. shaft to stop h the (ltllt'll being thr wn out of gear. lt is to beunderstood that these doors (lose in various way the way i lustrated in the drawing being seh-rted lot the purposes of illustration only. 'l'hey may be closed either by a foot t-readle or hand lever. It is to be understood that in those forms of the invention illustrated in l igs. l. .2 and 3, the shaft 2 or 2" may either have a key or splineronneetion with the pinion, or it may be square and the pinions eorresptnnlingl vsha )(d so as to slide l'reely thereaiong, but held to turn therewith.

1 From the foregoing deseription in eonneolion with the al't'ompalrving drawings, it will be seen that l have provided a very simple, durable and ellieient eonstruetion ol' ("urn planter ol' the edge drop type, so arranged that thel'eed may bevaried :tt't'ul'tling to the fertility of the soil in whit'h the planter is operating without the neeessily ol' rhanging the l'eed plates. this being an im- )orta.it advantage. partit'ulal'l)" where there is both high and low-ground in the same lield.

Having thus described the invent-ion, what is claimed as new is: 4 I

1. in a corn planter 'ol' the edge drop type,

the combination with the feed hoppers, and

llu

feed plates, of actuating mechanism for the feed plates, and means for adjus pinfi said actuating mechanism so as to vary t e extent of movement of said plates at each actuation.

2. In a com'pianter, the combination of feed plates, an actuating shaft arranged to turn said plates, 9. elutc member mounted on said shaft, a disk also mounted on said shaft in proximity to said clutch member, a series of spring pressed pins carried by said disk and arranged for engagement by said clutch member, a plate provided with doors designed when open to permit sundry of said pins to move by spring action out of the" 15 way of said clutch member, and means for closing said doors.

- In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses. 

